Is one of our national treasures soon to be trashed

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Can we stop our country's historic Village of Mayport from being paved over? 

The City Council of Jacksonville, Florida, may be about to destroy our nation's FIRST settlement seeking religious freedom, and the site of the First Thanksgiving, between these French Huguenot settlers and the local Timucuan Indians?   The Jacksonville (Florida) Port Authority wants to do exactly this in order to create a terminal for Carnival cruiseships, and Jacksonville's City Fathers just may approve their request to alter our publicly-approved Comprehensive Plan in order to do it.  The situation looks grim for both American history and democracy. 

Mayport Village, a part of Jacksonville, Florida, is the nation's oldest settlement founded in search of religious freedom (1562) - older than St. Augustine, and half a century older than Plymouth or Jamestown.  The Village is under immediate threat of being bulldozed into oblivion by Florida's notorious growth machine. 

The fate of Mayport Village comes up for a vote by the Jacksonville City Council on Tuesday, January 13th, at 5 pm, preceded by a vote by its Land-Use and Zoning Committee on Tuesday, January 6th, at 5 pm.  The choice is between preserving this historic Village (popula tion 250) with its near-unique shrimping fleets and beautiful waterfront, and a cruise terminal of questionable value that has been proposed by the politically-appointed Board of the Jacksonville Port Authority (Jaxport).

Mayport is the site of a column originally placed onshore by the French captain Jean Ribault, after he and his ship of families fleeing religious persecution in Europe, landed here in May 1562 (Hence "May port").   

The Village is also part of the East Coast Greenway, a hiking and biking trail from Maine to Key West, part of the Buccaneer Trail and "Scenic A1A," which celebrate the importance to history of this "First Coast" of America.  The National Park Service's Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve shares Mayport's waterfront.  Mayport Villagers work their 72-vessel  shrimping fleet, one of the last in the State, and Mayport has won the State's designation as a "Working Waterfront," which specifically excludes s erving as a "Seaport" for ocean transport vessels such as cruiseships. 

I attach a very important letter with full details, which I hope you'll read in its entirety, written by a lawyer volunteering his time, as a concerned citizen, to help the Village.

Here's the crux:

Bordered by a National Parks Preserve and by the US Navy's Mayport Naval Station, Mayport Village's 60 acres filled with homes, shrimping docks, and restaurants offer no possibility for expansion in any direction.

Jaxport's terminal artificially plans stay just under the 10,000 square foot limit for avoiding an Environmental Impact Statement.  Anyone can guess that, if Jaxport's inadequate plan is approved and started, Jaxport will announce that -- whoops! -- the plan forgot such-and-such, or just didn't allow sufficient room, and so Jaxport will be able to command, by eminent domain, more parcels of land, until they have all of Mayport, or at least all its waterfront and lif e blood.

In the meantime, human life near the ships, with their foreign-flagged, lawless pollution, will become not only unhealthy, but also unbearable for the people whose community has gently fished and prospered there for 500 years.

Jaxport holds out to City Council the lure of money (not from tourism! - Carnival's aim is that cruisers spend all their money onboard) and jobs (perhaps a few trash haulers and parking garage attendants).

As an alternative to thedestruction of historic and scenic Mayport village, the City should move ahead with its own ALREADY APPROVED Waterfront Partnership Plan, after removing the threat of Jaxport, so that everyone can at last begin creating a wonderful Mayport that WILL provide jobs and tourist dollars, and will not destroy and pollute our waters, land, and air.

Please, then, read the letter that Andrew Brigham, Esquire, has recently delivered to all City Council members. In addition to this letter, Mr. Brigham's Ap pendix of thorough-going research is available, but too large to email; it can be obtained at this link:
https://download.yousendit.com/Q01HNWNwMGsxUUNGa1E9PQ

If this temporary link has expired by the time you can get to it, please call Mr. Brigham's office, which can arrange a new link for you. 904-730-9001.

All that the local public seems to hear about this forthcoming and fateful decision - a decision that affects all of America -- comes from Jaxport's paid PR function. Mayport Village doesn't have a publicist.

In reaction to the continuing pressures and political corruption from Florida's powerful growth machine, a widespread grassroots movement called Florida Hometown Democracy is mounting, aiming to end the distress and never-ending need of communities like Mayport Village to defend themselves.  The private-interest growth machine consists of the individuals who benefit from the excessive housing and road construction that they persuade legislator s to permit through changes to our Comprehensive Land-Use Plans.  Taxpayers are then forced to pay for the new infrastructure for this unnecessary and unwelcome sprawl.  The machine has currently caused not only a housing and financial bust, but also huge deficits in public budgets for infrastructure and services.  The FHD Amendment is expected to appear on the ballot in 2010.  Mayporters, like  other Floridians, endorse this Amendment, which provides for communities - not developer-influenced politicians - to make the final decisions about how and whether they want to grow.  The FHD Amendment, had it been in place now, could save Mayport.   As it is, one must hope that the City Council will vote for the people's, rather than the developers', plan for Mayport Village, the nation's first settlement founded for freedom.
 


Useful links:
www.SaveMayportVillage.net
Ronnie Fussell, President, Jacksonville City Council, (90 4) 630-1393, RonnieF@coj.net
www.FloridaHometownDemocracy.com

#    #    #    #    #
Media Release

For further information:
Sandra Tuttle, 9th generation Mayporter, 904-372-9717
Michelle Baldwin, President of the Mayport Village Civic Association,  904-234-7296


Is one of our national treasures soon to be trashed, and for no good reason?  Can we stop our country's historic Village of Mayport from being paved over? 

The City Council of Jacksonville, Florida, may be about to destroy our nation's FIRST settlement seeking religious freedom, and the site of the First Thanksgiving, between these French Huguenot settlers and the local Timucuan Indians?   The Jacksonville (Florida) Port Authority wants to do exactly this in order to create a terminal for Carnival cruiseships, and Jacksonville's City Fathers just may approve their request to alter our publicly-app roved Comprehensive Plan in order to do it.  The situation looks grim for both American history and democracy. 

Mayport Village, a part of Jacksonville, Florida, is the nation's oldest settlement founded in search of religious freedom (1562) - older than St. Augustine, and half a century older than Plymouth or Jamestown.  The Village is under immediate threat of being bulldozed into oblivion by Florida's notorious growth machine. 

The fate of Mayport Village comes up for a vote by the Jacksonville City Council on Tuesday, January 13th, at 5 pm, preceded by a vote by its Land-Use and Zoning Committee on Tuesday, January 6th, at 5 pm.  The choice is between preserving this historic Village (population 250) with its near-unique shrimping fleets and beautiful waterfront, and a cruise terminal of questionable value that has been proposed by the politically-appointed Board of the Jacksonville Port Authority (Jaxport).

Mayport is the site of a column originally placed onshore by the French captain Jean Ribault, after he and his ship of families fleeing religious persecution in Europe, landed here in May 1562 (Hence "May port").   

The Village is also part of the East Coast Greenway, a hiking and biking trail from Maine to Key West, part of the Buccaneer Trail and "Scenic A1A," which celebrate the importance to history of this "First Coast" of America.  The National Park Service's Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve shares Mayport's waterfront.  Mayport Villagers work their 72-vessel  shrimping fleet, one of the last in the State, and Mayport has won the State's designation as a "Working Waterfront," which specifically excludes serving as a "Seaport" for ocean transport vessels such as cruiseships. 

I attach a very important letter with full details, which I hope you'll read in its entirety, written by a lawyer volunteering his time, as a concerned citizen, to he lp the Village.

Here's the crux:

Bordered by a National Parks Preserve and by the US Navy's Mayport Naval Station, Mayport Village's 60 acres filled with homes, shrimping docks, and restaurants offer no possibility for expansion in any direction.

Jaxport's terminal artificially plans stay just under the 10,000 square foot limit for avoiding an Environmental Impact Statement.  Anyone can guess that, if Jaxport's inadequate plan is approved and started, Jaxport will announce that -- whoops! -- the plan forgot such-and-such, or just didn't allow sufficient room, and so Jaxport will be able to command, by eminent domain, more parcels of land, until they have all of Mayport, or at least all its waterfront and life blood.

In the meantime, human life near the ships, with their foreign-flagged, lawless pollution, will become not only unhealthy, but also unbearable for the people whose community has gently fished and prospered there for 500 years.

Jaxport holds out to City Council the lure of money (not from tourism! - Carnival's aim is that cruisers spend all their money onboard) and jobs (perhaps a few trash haulers and parking garage attendants).

As an alternative to thedestruction of historic and scenic Mayport village, the City should move ahead with its own ALREADY APPROVED Waterfront Partnership Plan, after removing the threat of Jaxport, so that everyone can at last begin creating a wonderful Mayport that WILL provide jobs and tourist dollars, and will not destroy and pollute our waters, land, and air.

Please, then, read the letter that Andrew Brigham, Esquire, has recently delivered to all City Council members. In addition to this letter, Mr. Brigham's Appendix of thorough-going research is available, but too large to email; it can be obtained at this link:
https://download.yousendit.com/Q01HNWNwMGsxUUNGa1E9PQ

If this temporary link has expired by the time you can get to it, please call Mr. Brigham's office, which can arrange a new link for you. 904-730-9001.

All that the local public seems to hear about this forthcoming and fateful decision - a decision that affects all of America -- comes from Jaxport's paid PR function. Mayport Village doesn't have a publicist.

In reaction to the continuing pressures and political corruption from Florida's powerful growth machine, a widespread grassroots movement called Florida Hometown Democracy is mounting, aiming to end the distress and never-ending need of communities like Mayport Village to defend themselves.  The private-interest growth machine consists of the individuals who benefit from the excessive housing and road construction that they persuade legislators to permit through changes to our Comprehensive Land-Use Plans.  Taxpayers are then forced to pay for the new infrastructure for this unnecessary and unwelcome sprawl.  The machine has currently caused not only a housing and financial bust, but also huge deficits in public budgets for infrastructure and services.  The FHD Amendment is expected to appear on the ballot in 2010.  Mayporters, like  other Floridians, endorse this Amendment, which provides for communities - not developer-influenced politicians - to make the final decisions about how and whether they want to grow.  The FHD Amendment, had it been in place now, could save Mayport.   As it is, one must hope that the City Council will vote for the people's, rather than the developers', plan for Mayport Village, the nation's first settlement founded for freedom.
 


Useful links:
www.SaveMayportVillage.net
Ronnie Fussell, President, Jacksonville City Council, (904) 630-1393, RonnieF@coj.net